The Staggers

The New Statesman’s rolling politics blog

Labour MP tells Louise Mensch: "a good wife doesn't disagree with her master"

A nasty slice of sexism from Labour MP Austin Mitchell.

By George Eaton Published 29 October 2012 13:11

Louise Mensch, who stepped down as the Conservative MP for Corby earlier this year. Photograph: Getty Images.

Louise Mensch was embarrassed yesterday when her husband, rock manager Peter Mensch, suggested in an interview with the Sunday Times (£) that she resigned as MP for Corby because she feared she would lose her seat at the next election. He told the paper: "She thought - and I wasn’t going to argue with her - that she’d get killed in the next election. So, to her, it seemed much more short-term than my job as a manager, which is going to go on for another 20 years. And listen, they hadn’t promoted her yet, and it’s not like she thought she had a future because perhaps she felt she was too outspoken."

In response, his wife took to Twitter to set the record straight. She tweeted: "Nothing, repeat nothing, influenced decision to resign other than inability to hold family life together away from him. Can honestly say I had no fear whatsoever of defeat at next election since had already decided not to stand again."

Whether or not one accepts her version of events, few will feel sympathy with the response of Labour MP Austin Mitchell. He tweeted this morning:

Shut up Menschkin. A good wife doesn't disagree with her master in public and a good little girl doesn't lie about why she quit politics.

Were a Tory MP to serve up sexism in this manner, Labour would immediately demand an apology. Let’s hope the party is no softer on Mitchell.

Update: With grim inevitability, Mitchell has responded by claiming that he was being ironic. He tweeted:

Calm down dears.Irony may be a low form of wit but it's clearly above my level.And yours.So my wife has banned me from tweeting today.

Given that Mitchell isn't a renowed defender of women's rights, it's hard to identify the "irony" he refers to. And there's no sign of an apology.

Update 2: Labour has now responded to Mitchell's tweet. A party source told The Staggers:

Austin Mitchell has made clear the tweet was a joke not a serious comment. It’s not funny, understandable that people find it offensive, and it is not the view of the Labour Party.

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Tags: Louise Mensch Conservatives Labour

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29 comments

Sun, 2012-11-04 21:50 — Mustang (not verified)

Who cares

Wed, 2012-10-31 11:17 — Ciaran Goggins

One wonders if she will be extradited from the US? She did name the Ched Evans rape "victim" on Twitter after all. Or are there 2 laws in operation, one for the rich, one for the poor?

Tue, 2012-10-30 21:10 — Hugh C Markey (not verified)

Suspect Austin MIchell's trampling over the delicate flowers of womankind will have no noticeable effect on the UK female electorate.
Suffragettes were made of sterner stuff though. Nevertheless it took WWI before the propertied womenfolk got the vote and a further decade before their property-less sisters could exercise their mandate. Geddit?
Heck, there was a coalition in 1918 and if our memory serves us right Ramsey MacDonald and his partners were in or out of government round about then.
Naturally the Tories got the benefit. Solid female vote for the Conservatives. Yes, and many wives voted contrary to their lord and master's wishes.
A heck of a lot of women do not consider husbands as lords and masters. Aye, but they vote for their real lords and masters.

Gritty Reality

Tue, 2012-10-30 17:26 — Michael Dixon (not verified)

For the so-called self -professed progressive Party, Labour still contains a lot of old reactionary relics.

Mitchell should have stuck to interviewing people like Revie and Clough on Yorkshire TV. He was much better at that than a political career that went nowhere really.

Tue, 2012-10-30 10:08 — Pavlova

Ironic?

So let's get this straight:

He's skewering the sexism directed at Louise Mench, the woman, via the use of sexism? And he did this because a Tory said something sexist about her quitting?

Or does he mean he was being controversial not ironic?

I tell you, what with Assange , Galloway, the pro-Islam stance and this, I think the biggest danger to women in this country is the left wing.

Tue, 2012-10-30 17:22 — Stuart Eels (not verified)

Got to agree but why was this woman chosen to stand for the Tories in the first place? She has shown no talent as an MP and the Tory experience runs deep across politics including Labour where candidates are imposed on local areas. Theres plenty of competent men and women out there without having celebrities imposed on them.

Tue, 2012-10-30 04:48 — smn (not verified)

Is this the Louise Mensch who could barely contain her amusement on 'Have I Got News For You' over the fact that protestors in front of St Paul's Cathedral were having the occasional cup of coffee from a nearby franchise (oh the hypocrisy! the irony!)?
Now THAT was funny...a sort smug, laugh-off-the-crisis, I'm alright Jack, establishmentarian, tax-avoidance-endorsing sort of funny.

Tue, 2012-10-30 01:16 — I don't care about the idiots on twitter (not verified)

I don't care about the idiots on twitter

Or anything they say or do. Please return to the real world.

I especially don't care about erstwhile Tory rock-chicks, or what they do or what they say, or who they are married to, or what who they are married to said about their careers. Or even what they didn't say, or said that they didn't say. Is the message becoming clear?

Actually there is not much I do care about, but I would like to know who it was in Thatcher's govt. that Tom Watson is so interested in.

I'm sure we will find out, but not on twitter, because there is only pointless idiocy on twitter.

Tue, 2012-10-30 00:01 — Orwell that ends well (not verified)

Socialists have done extremely well with their thought-police strategy.

They can say what they like about any group, no matter their gender, skin-colour, sexual preference, economic background. They can just claim irony.

For me, it's just another reason to want to kick Mitchell's stupid face in. Not that I would, but I would like to.

Mon, 2012-10-29 21:26 — Fraziel1

"An election in the area soon and Mitchell does his Kinnoch moment to help try destroy the women's vote for Labour.."

Oh, please get a grip and reign in the melodrama. I imagine most people, other than the usual utterly humourless left and femi-nazis , will see this for the blindingly obviously light hearted cheek that it was. lets not forget that Louise mensch was just another rich toff playing at being a politician. If he really had meant it as abuse anyway, who cares? There is a lot more important stuff going on than this,

Mon, 2012-10-29 22:50 — Indu Pendent

I must be a femi-nazi then as I didnt think Mitchels comments were whitty or ironic, just the sad witterings of a has been sexist misogynist.

Its wont affect the Labour vote as Mitchel is a big waist of space -who cares what he thinks.

There is a huge fundament issue in Labour in that the party really does not like to see women get ahead and do well. The chances of a woman Labour PM are less than virutally nill.

Mon, 2012-10-29 21:47 — gsilver (not verified)

"If he really had meant it as abuse anyway, who cares?"

... and theres our problem. If we abuse the right calling them nazi's and evil then thats ok because we're right and they are "evil" and "nazi's". But god forbid that someone on the right makes a joke because we'll crucify them on it. No wonder we drive so many people away from our cause simply through this unrelenting arrogance and two faced hypocrisy we exude.

Mon, 2012-10-29 20:53 — gsilver (not verified)

dual standards here I'm afraid ... boris has make ironic comment and labour were all over him claiming racism & bigotry. I'm no tribal drone and this sort of double standards makes me very uncomfortable because it shows the left in a very poor light. Especially on the heels of ed balls trying to get out of being a deficit denier when he's shown on camera doing just that.

Mon, 2012-10-29 20:47 — Posh Tosh (not verified)

An election in the area soon and Mitchell does his Kinnoch moment to help try destroy the women's vote for Labour..

Mon, 2012-10-29 20:26 — gerg (not verified)

Well just from the twitter post about the article it was clearly an ironic joke. I have no idea who the MP is but it's clearly a joke.

Mon, 2012-10-29 20:18 — Posh Tosh (not verified)

Is Austine Mishelle trying to woo Davina Cameron?

I hate those coded messages of love!

Mon, 2012-10-29 16:47 — Dale HC (not verified)

I once had the pleasure of meeting Austin Mitchell. He didn't seem to take much seriously; I found him very funny. Awful MP though.

Mon, 2012-10-29 15:24 — Keir

Bewein dein Sünde groß.

Mon, 2012-10-29 19:48 — Johnny Xed (not verified)

Well, at least I got it. ;-)

Mon, 2012-10-29 14:55 — Herbert (not verified)

Don't let's forget in all the fuss that she just called her old man a liar. More time with the family? Watch this space.

Mon, 2012-10-29 14:39 — Eugene Greco (not verified)

I was trying to remember why I hadn't taken up the offer to join the Labour party.
Many thanks to Austin for reminding me why I haven't and why I shouldn't do so in the future.
Wonder if Ed has the guts to deal with him the way he thought Lord Snooty should've dealt with Mitchell? Doubt it...

Mon, 2012-10-29 17:30 — kenelmist (not verified)

What was the real reason?

Mon, 2012-10-29 17:30 — kenelmist (not verified)

What was the real reason?

Mon, 2012-10-29 14:29 — Barrie J (not verified)

Austin Mitchell 100% tw#t often to be found in the company of 650 others.

Mon, 2012-10-29 14:27 — Big Fat Trev (not verified)

Hateful filth. And that's just me.

Mon, 2012-10-29 13:40 — Lucidus (not verified)

Some almost-forgotten Labour MP said about 60 years ago,

"Don't say anything ironically unless you can guarantee it'll be printed in ironic type."

Austin Mitchell would do well to remember that. Even as supposed jocular comment, it's a poor one.

Mon, 2012-10-29 16:18 — needhat (not verified)

Lucidus is misquoting.
It should read:
"Don't such anything ironically unless you are certain that your audience has a greater level of intelligence than a mentally retarded chicken"